This invention relates to a system for supporting the non-driven wheel of a bicycle when the driven wheel of the bicycle is engaged with an exercise device such as a bicycle trainer, and more particularly to such a system in which the height of the bicycle wheel can be varied so as to vary the angle of inclination of the bicycle.
A common form of exercise involves use of a bicycle trainer, which includes a frame that supports the driven wheel of the bicycle and a resistance unit that engages the wheel to apply resistance upon rotation of the wheel. Bicycle trainers of this type are available from Graber Products, Inc. of Madison, Wis. under its designation CYCLE-OPS, as well as from a number of other sources.
The driven wheel of the bicycle, which is typically the rear wheel, is elevated above the supporting surface, such as a floor, when supported by the frame of the bicycle trainer for engagement with the resistance unit of the trainer. This results in the bicycle being oriented at a downward angle when the non-driven wheel, typically the front wheel, rests on the supporting surface. To address this problem, it is known to support the front wheel using a riser block or the like, one example of which is illustrated in Mackert U.S. Pat. No. 6,190,290, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference. The '290 patent illustrates a riser block that has a number of upwardly facing arcuate grooves or recesses having different radii, so as to receive differently sized bicycle wheels. While this type of support functions satisfactorily, it only serves to elevate and maintain the front bicycle wheel at a predetermined elevation, which is designed so as to position the bicycle in a generally level attitude relative to the support surface.
It is a object of the present invention to provide a support system for the non-driven wheel of a bicycle having a driven wheel engaged with a bicycle trainer, which is adapted to support the wheel at a number of different elevations relative to the supporting surface to that the bicycle can be positioned in a level orientation and also at an uphill angle when the non-driven wheel is located above the driven wheel. It is a further object of the invention to provide such a system which is easy to use and can be quickly and easily adjusted so as to support the front wheel of the bicycle at different elevations. Yet another object of the invention is to provide such a system which functions in a manner similar to the prior art to provide ease of understanding and use. A still further object of the invention is to provide such a system which is relatively simple in its construction while providing a great deal of flexibility in supporting a bicycle wheel at different elevations above the supporting surface.
In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, a system for stationarily supporting the non-driven wheel of a bicycle includes first and second support members configured such that one of the support members can be used to support the bicycle wheel, or such that the support members can be used together to support the bicycle wheel at different elevations. Each support member includes a base that normally rests on the supporting surfaces and wheel engagement structure located above the supporting surface, which is configured to engage the wheel. When the first and second support members are used in combination, the support members can be engaged in different orientations relative to each other, in which a lower one of the support members is positioned between the supporting surface and an upper one of the support members.
In a first orientation, the support members are positioned in a nesting orientation, in which an upper area of the lower support member is received within an interior defined by the upper support member, and a lower portion of the lower support member is located between the supporting surface and the lower extent of the upper support member. In this manner, the wheel engagement structure of the upper support member is raised to a first elevation relative to the supporting surface that is above the elevation of the wheel engagement structure when the upper support member is placed directly on the supporting surface.
In a second orientation, the support members are arranged in a back-to-back stacked orientation, in which the lower support member is inverted and the lower extent of the upper support member engages the upper extent of the lower support member. In this orientation, substantially the entire height of the lower support member is located between the supporting surface and the upper support member, to place the wheel engagement structure of the upper support member at a second elevation above the first elevation.
In a third orientation, the upper and lower support members are positioned so that both the upper and lower support members face upwardly and are engaged in a non-nesting stacked configuration, to place the wheel support structure of the upper support member at a third elevation above the first elevation and below the second elevation. The lower support member includes upwardly facing support structure, which is configured to engage the upper support member when the upper support member is positioned out of alignment with the lower support member.
In a preferred embodiment, the first and second support members are generally identical in construction, so that either of the support members may be used as the upper support member and either support member may be used as the lower support member. The support members have a series of interconnected walls that form a base and define a hollow interior. The wheel engagement structure may be in the form of a number of arcuate recesses or troughs located at different elevations relative to the base. In the nesting orientation, the wheel engagement structure of the lower support member nests within a matching interior defined by the wheel engagement structure of the upper support member. In the back-to-back stacked configuration, the lower support member is inverted so that the upper extent of the wheel engagement structure engages the supporting surface and the base of the lower support member faces upwardly. The bases of the upper and lower support members have engagement structure which prevents lateral movement between the upper and lower support members when the base of the upper support member is engaged with the upwardly facing base of the lower support member.
The arcuate recesses or troughs that make up the wheel engagement structure are each preferably defined by a pair of spaced apart walls. The support structure, which is operable to position the first and second support members in the third orientation, is preferably in the form of transversely aligned recesses in the walls that define the wheel engagement structure, each of which terminates in an upwardly facing lower land that is cofigured to engage the lower extent of one of the walls defining the base of the upper support member.
The invention contemplates a system for supporting the non-driven wheel of a bicycle at different elevations, as summarized above, as well as a method of supporting a bicycle wheel at different elevations and a support member that is capable of being used to support a bicycle wheel at different elevations, substantially in accordance with the foregoing summary.
Various other features, objects and advantages of the invention will be made apparent from the following description taken together with the drawings.